Garrison belt how to#

The loops appeared at the same time that the waistband and the navel started to part ways. Their earlier models featured cinch backs and suspender buttons, but no belt loops. This was the first year that Levi’s started to include belt loops on their jeans. This means we’re looking at the early part of the twentieth century, with 1922 as perhaps the most important year in the belt’s workwear history. We’re more interested, though, in the belt as a purely utilitarian accessory. There’s a long history of finely decorated belts, which were common signs of wealth and prestige both on and off the battlefield for centuries. This practice echoes down to us through the ages-the winners of boxing or martial arts bouts still leave the ring carrying with a shiny belt slung over their shoulder. This made it a suitable (and bloodless) trophy that the victor could carry off the battlefield. It was not only for storage, it was also (when made of sturdy animal hides or metal) a protective covering for some of the body’s more vital bits. On the battlefield, a man’s belt was absolutely essential. They’ve been with us since the bronze age, starting as ways to secure tunics and as places for soldiers to store weapons and other supplies they might need on the charge or on the run. The precise origins of belts are difficult to buckle up, but we do know that belts predate pants. If we want to be taken seriously, we need a good belt (ideally one that matches our footwear). Why a Well-Made Leather Belt is Essentialįirst as functional pieces and later as fashionable ones, belts have been with us for almost all of human history, and there’s no chance of them going the way of the dinosaur. Availability and price of the products we recommend are subject to change. We earn a small commission when you click on some of our links and buy something. If you want to understand the criteria we apply for each item, read our definitions of ‘well-made’ and ‘essential’. If you want to know more about why we created these guides, please read our Manifesto. 10 well-made and essential leather belts we recommend.

Garrison belt how to#

How to identify a well-made leather belt.Why a well-made leather belt is essential.If you’re still using your old belt, or if (gasp) you’re not wearing a belt at all, the list below will be an excellent starting point. And if you’re going to wear well-made selvedge, you should invest in a well-made belt that, like your jeans, will take on character as it ages. If you want to wear denim seriously, you need a belt. It’s a fashion faux pas every bit as egregious as socks with sandals, an unironed dress shirt, or mustard stains. The picture is incomplete without it.Įmpty belt loops represent a missed opportunity. If we’ve gone with boots below the cuff, we need matching leather at the waist. We wear a belt primarily to frame our jeans. But this isn’t why we cinch the strap of leather around our waist. If we’ve found the perfect-fitting pair of jeans, they sit exactly where they should sit with or without a belt. In the same way, most of us don’t need a belt to hold our pants up. Our shirts might fit us perfectly and need no help staying together at the neck, but a nice tie is an opportunity to introduce a splash of colour to an outfit. When we developed buttons, we no longer needed the necktie, but we kept it anyways.

The knot was a way of securing the collar around the neck. We offer the following counter-argument: neckties are a relic from an age when collars didn’t fasten with buttons. Since most of us have been extremely careful when it comes to picking our size, we can (so they say) do away with the belt entirely.

If our jeans fit, why do we need a belt? Belts only make sense if our jeans sit a little loose on the hips. We’ve all heard the arguments against belts. It’s like boots without socks or coffee without caffeine: something’s wrong something’s missing.

In both untucked looks and tucked ones, it’s surprisingly common to see top-shelf denim with empty belt loops. If you urgently need a belt now, jump to our list of belts we recommend here. Since it’s so rarely noticed, many untucked denimheads simply transfer their trusty old belt into their raw denim. Denimheads generally opt for untucked looks, so the belt is often hidden away. No accessory is as frequently overlooked as the belt. Well-Made Essentials » Belt Our Top 10 List of Well-Made Leather Belts to Buckle Up Your Selvedge and Workwear Looks